Method of and apparatus for packaging material



Feb. 18, 1941. T. E. PlAzzE Erm.

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PACKAGING MATERIAL Filed April 24, 1939 .4Sheets-Sheet 1 .Pil

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Feb. 18, 1941. `T, E, mm ET AL 2,232,186

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PACKAGING MATERIAL Filed April 24, 1939 4Sheets-Sheet 2 ATToRNEY.

Feb. 18, 1941. T. E. PlAzzE ETAL METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PACKAGINGMATERIAL Filed April 24, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet c7 g IEINTORS BYCwwwa/$777014@ ATToRNEY.

Feb. 18, v1941'. T.l E. PlAzzE ETAL v 2,232,186

METHOD OF ANDV APPARATUS FOR PACKAGING MATERIAL 4 Filed April 24, l193594 Sheet'S-Sheer. 4

ATTORNEY.

Patented Feb. 1s, 1941 UNITED; STATES PATENT OFFICE zasaiss MTHOD F ANDAPPARATUS FOR PACK- Y AGING MATERIAL E. Piane, Milwaukee, and Boy E.Hanaon.' Wauwatosa. Wil., assigner: to Milprlnt,

Ine., Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Dela- Application April' 24,1939, Serial No. 269,582

19(5laims.

The present invention relates in general tov improvements in the art ofpackaging sundry materials, and relates more specifically to an improvedmethod of and apparatus for confining batches of bulk material inindividual containers.

Generally stated, an object of our present invention is to provide animproved method of and apparatus for packaging material.

It has heretofore been proposed to form baglike mappings of definitesize and shape about a forming block or mandrel, by utilizing a ribbonof paper stock or the like, which was rst folded intermediate its endsabout one extreme end of the mandrel and subsequently had its sideportions overlapped and united at the opposite sides of the formingblock to complete the bag. The mandrel was subsequently removed from thebags to permit the charges to be hereafter inserted within the open endsof these bag-like receptacles; and when such wrappers are formed of thinand highly flexible material such as cellulose iilm ortransparent rubbercompound sheets, it is extremely diilicult to insert the commodityespecially if the containers have been collapsed after formation thereofand must be distended prior to admission of the contents. Because of thedelicate nature of some of these wrapper sheets, the bags are frequentlytorn during the loading operation, thus causing considerable waste andnecessarily increasing the packing costs; and because of the fact thatthe forming mandrel had to be removed before final nlling of these priorbags, considerable time was lost.

In accordance with the present invention, we provide a new and usefulmethod of producing such bag-like receptacles and of effectingintroduction of the batches of material, without necessitating collapseof the bags after formation thereof and prior to loading; thus not onlyfacilitating filling of the containers but also eliminating waste ofmaterial and time.

We also provide simple and highly eiiicient mechanism for automaticallyforming and loading these containers, in such manner that waste of bagforming stock is avoided and receptacles of any desired and uniformshape and size may be expeditiously produced.

Another specific object of our invention is to provide an improved modeof quickly forming l and of facilitating loading of bags formed of thinand relatively frail transparent sheet material such as cellulose filmor rubber composition sheets.

Still another specific object of the invention is 55 to providerelatively simple and highly eillcient machinery for facilitatingcommercial exploitation of our improved method, which may however, becarried on by hand as well as with the aid of said mechanism.

'Ihese and other objects and advantages of our 5 invention will beapparent from the following de tailed description.

A clear conception of the several steps of our improved packagingmethod, and of the construction and operation of one type of apparatusfor lo carrying on this method, may be had by referring to the drawingsaccompanying and forming a part of this specincation wherein likereference characters designate the same or similar parts in the variousviews. 1

Fig. l is a front and side perspective-view of the improved packagingmachine, looking toward the driving side thereof and operating to formbags with two-ply material;

Fig. 2 is another perspective view ofthe same 2 machine operating inlike manner, but looking toward the opposite side thereof Fig. 3 is arather schematic section through the mechanism, showing the initialsheet feeding and loading mandrel supporting plates in alined position;

Fig. 4 is a similar but more fragmentary section of the mechanism shownin Fig. 3, but showing the mandrel supporting plate swung rear- 30wardly;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic side elevation of the cutter and feed rollactuating mechanism, showing the cutting knife in active position andthe feed rollerA in inactive position;

Fig. 6 is a. diagrammatic view similar to that of'Fig. 5, but showingthe knife in inactive position while the feed roller is active;

Fig. 7 is another schematic plan view of the driving mechanism of themachine; 40

Fig. 8 is an enlarged central vertical section through the frictionclutch constituting a part of the drive mechanism; Y

Fig. 9 is .a diagram showing the initial step in the formation 0f asingle ply bag;

Fig. l0 is a similar diagram showing the material laden mandrelinitially positioned upon the bag forming sheet;

- Fig. 11 is another diagram showing the next step wherein the stock isbeing folded over the upper open end of the mandrel;

Fig. 12 is another similar diagram showing the stock being initiallyside folded about the mandrel;

Fig. 13 is a further diagram showing the com- 55 heat sealing;

Fig. 14 is a further similar diagram showing the completion of thebag-like receptacle by heat sealing;

Fig. 15 is still another diagram showing the completed bag with theloaded mandrel therein, being delivered from the forming machine;

Fig. 16 is a part sectional enlarged side view of a bag and mandrelassemblage inverted, and showing the mandrel being withdrawn from thecompleted container; and i Fig. 17 is a perspective view of the finallyformed', filled and closed bag.

While we have illustrated and described one practical and commercialembodiment of a machine for automatically and continuously producingbags in accordance with our improved method of packagingl material, itis not desired to thereby unnecessarily restrict the scope -or utility,since the process may be carried on by other types of mechanisms or byhand.

Referring to the drawings, the improved machine for producing successivebags 20 of the type shown in Fig. 17, comprises in general mechanism forfacilitating the feeding of successiveA measured sections or lengths 2|of ribbon-like flexible stock from one or more stock supply rolls 22,23; a knife or cutter 24 cooperable with the feed mechanism for severingthe lengths 2| from the supply ribbons; alinable upper and lowerinclined plates 25, 26 respectively, the upper of which is flxedlymounted upon a main frame 21, and thev lower of which is swingablysuspended at its lower end from said frame; one or more hollow formingelements or mandrels 28 adapted to confine batches of material and to besuccessively positioned upon said lower tiltable plate 26 over the lowerportion of a sheet length 2| disposed thereon; a central conveyor 29having an upwardly movable stretch provided with'conveying lugs 30 whichare adapted to be advanced along a central bifurcation 3| in the plate26 when the latter is swung rearwardly to create a gap between itsupperend and the lower end of the fixed plate 25; a third plate 32fixedly positioned beneath the plate 25 and `having thereon side foldingformers 33, 34 for folding the side portions 35, 36 of the sheet lengths2| over the opposite sides of the upwardly advancing mandrels 28 andover each other; heat sealing devices 31 cooperable with the oppositefolded sides of the formed bags 20 to permanentlyl unite the overlappingportions 35, 36; a receiving platform conveyor 39 suspended from theupper rear part of the frame 21 and formed to receive the successivebags 20 with the material laden mandrels 28 therein; and a series ofchain drives 40, 4 I, 42 and a clutch 43 for imparting motion from apropellingmotor 44 to the several movable elements of the machine.

The mechanism for facilitating the feeding of successive accuratelymeasured lengths 2| of stock, from the supply rolls 22, 23, is bestillustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 5 and 6, and While the machine specificallyshown is adapted to produce bags 20 of double ply or thickness of eitherthe same or of different materials, it can also be utilized to producesingle ply bags 20 by merely omitting either of the stock supply rolls22, 23, as illustrated in the diagrams of Figs. 9 to 15 inclusive.Journaled in frame 21 beneath the upper xed plate 25, and with itsperiphery projecting upwardly through a transverse slot in this plate,is a lower positively driven feed roller 45 which is adapted to berotated by a chain 38 coacting with a sprocket at one end of thisroller; and a set of movable upper feed rollers 46 is cooperable withthe lower roller 45 whenever the cutter 24 is elevated,` to feed stockfrom the supply rolls 22, 23. 'Ihe feed rollers 46 are Journaled in abracket 41 as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, and this bracket 41 is swingablysuspended from a cross rod 46 and has an adjustable stop screw 49 whichis engageable with the plate 25 to prevent the rollers 46 fromcontacting the lower roller 45 when no sheet stock is being i'ed. Therollers 46 are constantly urged toward the roller 45 by a spring 50, andthe upper end of the bracket 41 has a'projection 5|. The knife or cutter24 which is cooperable with a transverse slot in the plate 25 to severthe stock, is carried by a lever 52 secured to a pivot shaft 53; andthis lever 52 is constantly urged to swing in a. clockwise direction asviewed in Figs. 5 and 6, by a spring 54, and has a cam portion 55 whichcoacts with the bracket projection 5| in such manner that when thecutter 24'is active as in Fig. 5, the feed rollers 45, 46 are inactive,and when the rollers 45, 46 are active as in Fig. 6,'theI cutter 24 isinactive. The cutter suspension lever 52 may also be pro'- l vided withspring ngers 56 which tend to free the severed lengths 2| from the knifeand holds them upon the plate 25, and which also serve as safety guards.

The side driving chain v42 and the intermediate conveyor chai-n 29 areoperable from a common transverse shaft 51 which is driven through thefriction clutch 43, and the chain 42 is provided with two spacedprojections 58, while the chain 29 has twosimilarly spaced pins 59disposed near the lugs 30 thereon. Located in the path of travel of theprojections 58, is a shifter plate 60 which is carried by an arm 6|swingably suspended from a pivot pin 62 adjustable along a slot 63 inthe frame 21; and a lever 64 is adjustably securedv to the medialportion of the arm 6| by means of a clamping nut 66. 'I'he pivot pin 62is provided with a clamping handle 61 for locking it in adjustedposition within the slot 63, and the lever 64 has several holes 68whereby it may be adjustably connected by means of a rod 69, with theswinging end of another lever 10 which is rigidly attached to the knifepivot shaft 53. A

clamping screw 1| serves to connect the rod- 69 and lever 10, and theassemblage is obviously such that the time of cutting may be varied toproduce cut sections orlengths 2| of any desired predetermined length,and with printed matter accurately centered or located on each of thesuccessive lengths 2|. The chain 36 which normally drives the lower feedroller 45, is adapted to be driven from the transverse shaft 51, byanother chain 1,2 coacting with gearing and sprockets, as shown in Figs.2, 5 and 6, and the lever 10 has a lateral projection 13 adapted toooact with the downwardly advancing upper stretch of the chain 38 asindicated in Fig. 1 for the purpose of augmenting the swinging actionofthe lever 52 when the blade or cutter 24 is brought into action.

'I'he frame 21 may also be provided with guide arms 14 swingablysuspended from a cross rod 15 and adapted to rest upon the ribbon stockas it is fed downwardly along the upper plate 25 by the feedrollers 45,46, see Figs. 1 and 2, and other sheet guiding and mandrel positioningarms 16 which are adjustable along a cross shaft 11 carried by the frame21, are cooperable with the lower plate 26 onopposite sides of thebifurcation 3|. The shaft 11 may be rotated to adjust the arms 16 towardor away from each other by means of a hand wheel 18, and the lowersprockets which coact with the chains 29, 42, are ro tatably journaledon this shaft 11 so that the shaft may be rotatedwithout affecting thesesprockets. 'Ihe lower end of the tiltable plate 26 is swingablysuspended from the shaft 11 and has a downward projection 19 as shown inFigs. 3 and 4, which is engageable with a hook 86 swingable about apivot pin 8| carried by the frame 21. The lower plate 26 is constantlyurged toward a position of alinement with the upper plate 25 by a spring82 coacting with the projection 19, but may be swung rearwardly towardthe conveyor chain 29, and the lower rear portion of the fixed upperplate 25 is provided with rollers 83 which are cooperable with the frontor upper surface of the mandrel 28 to hold the lower plate 26 inproximity to the feed chain 29 while a bag is being formed. The hook 88is also biased toward the path of travel of the pins 59 by a spring 84or the like, so thatA when the plate 26 swings forwardly, the hookwillengage the ap-I proaching pin 59 and will stop the conveying chain29. k

'Ihe electric motor 44 is controllable by means of a switch 85 shown inFig. 2, and the heat sealing devices 31 may be energized from the powersource with the aid of a control switch 86, and when the motor 44 isoperating, motion is being constantly transmitted through the-drivingchain 48 to the sprocket 81 forming one element of'the clutch 43, asshown in Fig. 8. The sprocket 81 is journaled on the shaft 51, and isconstantly urged toward the friction disk 88 of the clutc'h 43, by aspring 89, and this sprocket constantly transmits motion to the naldischarge conveyor 39 through the driving chain 4| When the lower plate26 is swung rearwardly so as to cooperate with the central conveyor 29,as in Fig. 4, and the hook 80 is disengaged from the pins 59, the clutch43 is effective to drive the shaft 51, and motion is transmitted to theconveyor 29 and to the chains 42, 12, 38; but when the hook 88 engagesone of the pins 59 upon return of the plate 26 to a position ofalinement withthe xed plate 25, then the motion of the conveyor 29 andof the shaft 51 and chain 42, is arrested and the clutch 43 slips. Theassemblage is therefore such that the cutter 24 and the stock feedrollers 4-5, 46 are active only when the mandrel conveyor 29 is active,and when this conveyor 29 is idle, the stock feed mechanism is alsoidle.

In order to permit operation of the machine on stock of differentwidths, and with mandrels 28 of different widths, the guide bars 16 andthe sealing devices 31 and folding formers 33 must be made laterallyadjustable in unison. 'I'his desirable result may be accomplished by thehand wheel 18 secured'to the transverse lower shaft 11. The mandrelpositioning and guide bars 16 are mounted upon internally threadedsleeves 98,-

When utilizing the improved mechanism forl the purpose of automaticallycarrying on the improved lprocess of packing successivebatches ofmaterial, a hollow mandrel 28 of proper dimensions should lrst beprovided, and this mandrel has a closed bottom so as to be able toreceive and retain successive measured batches of granular or other bulkmaterial 93, as indicated in Figs. 10 and 16. Such adjustment, in orderto obtain proper lengths 2| of the Wrapping stock, and proper width to.accommodate the selected mandrel 28, may be obviously effected byproperly positioning the lever 64 with the aid of the clamping screw 66and handle 11, and by also manipulating the hand wheel 18 so as toproperly space the guide bars 16 and the heating and folding devices.When the machine has been "properly adjusted, either one or both of thestock feed rollers 22, 23 may be utilized, and in order to avoidconfusion, the yoperation of the machine will be described inconjunction with a single stock feed roller 22.

Referring to the diagrams of Figs. 9 to 16 inclusive, in Fig. 9 a length2| of sheet material has been dlivered from'the supply roll 22 by thefeed rollers 45, 46 and has been severed from the stock supply by thecutter 24. plate 26 has been swung into alinement with the upper xedplate 25, and the motion of the conveyor 29 has been arrested by theengagement of the hook 88 with the pin 59 in the manner illustrated inFig. 3. The propelling motor 44 may be operating, vand the heat sealingdevices 31 are energized, and the operation of the motor is causing thesprocket 81 to operate the discharge conveyor 39 through the chain 4|.

In Fig. l0, the material laden mandrel 28 has been positioned upon thelower end of the section or length 2| of wrapping material and upon thelower plate 26, and upon pushing the mandrel 28 so as to move the plate26 to the position shown in Fig. 1l, the lower projection 30 of theconveyor 29 is brought into engagement with the closed bottom of themandrel 28 and begins moving this mandrel upwardly, thereby causing thewrapping sheet to close the upper end of the mandrel 28.

Asv the upward movement of the material laden mandrel 28 proceeds asillustrated in Fig. 12, the cutter 24 is elevated and the feed rollers45, 46 become active to feed a subsequent length 2| of materialdownwardly along the fixed plate 25. Simultaneously with this feeding ofa subsequent length 2|, the opposite lower side portions 35 of thematerial which has been wrapped around the upper open end of the mandrel28, are folded upwardly into snug engagementwith the mandrel 28 by theside formers 33.

The mandrel is then carried upwardly to cause the side formers 34 tofold the upper side portions of the wrapping sheet downwardly over thepreviously folded portions 35, as illustrated in Fig. 13, and the feedrollers 45, 46 continue to feed stock from the roller 2'2 while thecutter 24 remains inactive. It is to be noted that during the'upwardtravel of the mandrel beneath the lower end of the fixed plate 25, theroller 83 is effective to snugly position the wrapping sheet against theupper face of the mandrel.

After the folding operation has been. completed, as in Fig. 13, themandrel 28 is carried between the vheat sealing devices 31, vas shown inFig. 14, and these devices then become effective to intimately untie thefolded overside portions 35, 36

and to thereby complete thebag 20. It is to be noted that in Fig. 14thev next length 2| of stock The lower the successive completedpackages.

machine and by withdrawing the inverted mandrel 28 from within thecompleted bag 2l, as illustrated in Fig. 16, the charge of material 93may be `deposited by gravity within the bag.

Upon removal of the mandrel' 28 from within the bag 20, this mandrel maybe positioned upon the machine in the manner shown in Fig. 10 afterhaving received a fresh charge of material 83. The bag which has justbeen completed can then be closed at its top as shown in Fig. 17, tothereby permanently confine the material 93 therein.vv Subsequent bagsmay be formed and loaded in like manner, andthe packing operations maybe carried on continuously to quickly and effectively confine successivecharges or batches of the material 93.

From Ithe foregoing detailed description, it will be apparent that ourpresent invention provides an extremely simple yet highly eflicientmethod of packaging materials without waste of either wrapping materialor commodity which is to be packed. The mandrel 28 serves the dualfunction of providing a form for producing the successive bags 20, andof delivering the charges of material to these bags, and the bags 20 maybe produced and filled as needed, thus eliminating necessity ofpreforming and collapsing the bags before they are actually filled withmaterial. The improved method has been found extremely effective inactual commercial use, and while the method may be more convenientlycarried on with the aid of mechanism such as shown and described herein,it can also be carried on by hand.

With respect to the improved mechanism for effecting automaticexploitation of the bag forming and lling method, this mechanism isobviously extremely flexible in its operation. It permits the formationof single or multiple ply bagsof any desired width or length, andperforms all operations necessary for the production of these bags,automatically. By providing stock feed and cutting mechanism wherein thecutter 24 is inactive when the feed rollers 45, 4i are active, and viceversa, the successive lengths 2| may be produced with extreme accuracy.The adjustable mechanism for controlling the actuation of the cutter 24and of the feed rollers 45, 46 and which is operable by the chain 42 andpins 58, will permit production of accurately measured successivelengths 2l of wrapping material, and this mechanism may also be adjustedso as to insure proper positioning of printed or decorative matter onThe mechanism which is operable with the hand wheel 18 to vary thedistance between the guide bars 16 and between the folding and sealingdevices, also enables convenient adjustment of the machine forcooperation with mandrels of different f widths, and the entireassemblage is both easily and safely operable. Units of this type areespecially desirable in cases where a manufacturer desires to packrelatively small but variable quantities of material, and the machinewill permit such a manufacturer or user to produce the successive bags2l of any desired size, and as needed for packaging purposes.. Inproducing bags of this type it may be desirable to utilize superimposedlayers of transparent material, of opaque material, or to have one sheetformed of transparent material while the other is formed of opaquematerial. While only one mandrel 28 is absolutely necessary, several ofthese mandrels may be utilized in order to increase the capacity of themachine, and the extra mandrels may obviously'be loaded while one ofthem is being passed through the machine. 'I'he roller 83 carried by thelower end of the fixed plate 25 serves to snugly wrap the lengths 2iabout the open upper end of the mandrel, and the side formers 33, 34which are of relatively well known construction, will effectively foldthe opposite overhanging side portions of the successive sheets intointimate contact with the sides of the mandrel 28. 'I'he inclineddisposition of the sheet feeding plates and of the mandrel guidingplates, is of considerable importance, since the wrapping sheets arethereby folded snugly about the mandrel without wrinkling or creasing;and when the bags have been finally formed, the mandrel is discharged bygravity in horizontal position so as to permit most convenient reversalthereof and delivery of the conned batches into the upright bag by theattendant. By virtue of this inclination, both the wrapping stock andthe mandrel are held in position by gravity, thus reducing theassemblage toits simplest form and avoiding necessity of providingspecial clamps or the like.

It should be understood that it is not desired to limit this inventionto the exact steps of the method, or to the exact details ofconstruction of the machine, herein shown and described, for variousmodifications within the scope of the claims may occur to personsskilled in the art.

We claim:

1. The method of packaging, which comprises, confining a charge ofmaterial in a cup-shaped mandrel, placing the mandrel with its open enduppermost against the lower half of a flat wrapping sheet, moving themandrel laterally and then upwardly through a confining gap to stretchthe sheet over the open end of the mandrel and about the opposite sidesthereof to form a bag, and nally inverting and removing the mandrel fromthe bag to deposit the charge of material by gravity into the latter. v

2. In combination, alineable plates having adjoining ends and oneofwhich is movable relative to the other, means for feeding successivelengths of wrapping stock across said ends. a mandrel positionable uponsaid movable plate in contact with the stock thereon and with one endnear said adjoining plate ends, means for relatively moving said platesto laterally displace said ends .and to initially fold said wrappingstock about the mandrel end, and means for advancing said mandrelbetween said plates to complete the folding operation.

3. In combination, alineable plates having adjoining ends and one ofwhich is movable relative to the other, means for feeding successivelengths of wrapping stock across said ends, a mandrel positionable uponsaid movable plate in contact with the stock thereon and with one endnear said adjoining plate ends, means for relatively moving said platesto laterally displace said ends and to initially fold said wrappingstock about the mandrel end. means for advancing said mandrel betweensaid plates to complete the folding operation, and means for ilnallyoverlapping the side portions of the folded stock length to formsuccessive bags. v

4. In combination, an upper inclined plate, a lower inclined platehaving its upper end swingable out of alinement with the lower end ofsaid upper plate, -means for feeding a sheet of material across the endsof said plates, a mandrel disposable upon said lower plate in contactwith the sheet material thereon and with one end near the adjoining endsof said plates, means for relatively moving said plates to move thelower plate out of alinement with said upper plate and to initially foldthe'sheet over the mandrel end, and means for advancing said mandrelbetween the off-set ends of said plates to complete the folding of thesheet over the mandrel end.

5. In combination, an upper inclined plate, a lower inclined platehaw'ng its upper end swing'- able out of alinement with the lower end ofsaid upper plate, means for feeding a sheet of material across the endsof said plates, a mandrel disposable upon said lower plate in contactwith the sheet material thereon and with its upper end near theadjoining ends of said plates, means for relatively moving said platesto move the lower plate out of alinement with said upper plate and toinitially fold the sheet over the mandrel end, means for advancing saidmandrel between the ofi-set ends of said plates to complete the foldingof the sheet over the mandrel end, and means for folding the edges ofthe sheet over the sides of the mandrel to form a bag.

6. In combination, an inclined conveyor, a plate swingable toward andaway from said conveyor, a plate iixedly positioned above said conveyorand having a roller spaced therefrom, a mandrel coacting with saidswingable plate and being cooperable with said roller to retain saidswingable plate in proximity to said conveyor, and means for advancingsaid mandrel along said swingable plate and laterally of said roller tofold a sheet of material over the leading end of the mandrel.

7. In combination, a conveyor, a fixed plate spaced from said conveyor,a movable plate alineable with said fixed plate and being movable to aposition of coaction with said conveyor,

means for feeding sheets of wrapping material across the junctionbetween said plates, a mandrel, and means for moving said mandrel alongsaid conveyor between said plates to fold the sheets about the mandrel.

8. In combination, a conveyor, a xed plate spaced from said conveyor, amovable plate alineable with said fixed plate and being movable to aposition of coaction with said conveyor, means for feeding sheets ofwrapping material across the junction between said plates, a mandrel,means for moving said mandrel along said conveyor between said plates tofold the sheets about the mandrel, and means for simultaneously stoppingsaid conveyor and said feeding means when said plates are alined.

9. In combination, a xed inclined upper plate, a lower plate swingableabout a lower pivot toward and downwardly away from the lower end ofsaid upper'plate, means for feeding sheet stock across the adjoiningends of said plates, a mandrel, and means for advancing said mandrelagainst the portion of said sheet spanning the gap between said plateswhen said lower plate has been swung downwardly to fold said sheet overthe upper mandrel end.

10. In combination, a iixed inclined upper plate having an upper endmovable downwardly from a position adjoining said lower end, means forfeeding sheet stock across said plate ends when the same are disposed inadjoining position, a mandrel, and means for moving said mandrelupwardly against said sheet between said plate ends when the end of saidlower plate has been moved downwardly. V

l1. In combination, a xed upper plate having a lower edge, a lower platehaving an upper edge movable from a position adjoining said lower edgeto a parallel position spaced from said edge, means for feeding sheetstock across said edges, a cup-shaped mandrel having an upper open end,and means for moving said mandrel end upwardly against the portion ofsaid sheet spanning the gap between said edges when the latter areseparated to fold the sheet over said open end. Y

l2. In combination, a xed upper plate having v a lower edge, a lowerplate having an upper edge movable from a position adjoining said loweredge to a parallel position spaced from said edge, means for feedingsheet stock across said edges, a cup-shaped mandrel having an upper openend, and a conveyor operable when said lower plate is moved to advancesaid mandrel upwardly against the portion of said sheet spanning the gapbetween said edges to fold the sheet over said open mandrel end.

13. In combination, a xed upper plate having means for moving saidmandrel end upwardly against the portion of said sheet spanning the gapbetween said edges when the latter are separated to fold the sheet oversaid open end and anti-friction means associated with the lower portionof said upper plate for stretching said sheet over said mandrel.

14. In combination, a xed upper plate, a conveyor beneath said plate, alower plate movable away from said upper plate and toward said conveyor,means for positioning sheet stock across the gap between said plates, amandrel, and meansfor advancing said mandrel against the portion of saidstock spanning said gap when said plates are separated and onto saidconveyor to `fold said sheet stock over the mandrel.

15. In combination, an upper plate having a lower edge, a lower platehaving an upper edge, means for relatively moving said plates toseparate said edges, means for feeding a wrapper sheet4 across saidedges, a cup-shaped commodity laden mandrel having an upper open end,and means for advancing the open end of said mandrel against said sheetand between said plate edges when separated to fold said sheet over themandrel end.

16. In combination, an upper plate having a lower edge, a lower platehaving an upper edge,

drel end, and means for subsequently folding the opposite edges of saidsheet'. over the sides of said mandrel to form a bag.

17. In combination, an upper plate having a lower edge, a lower platehaving an upper edge, means for relatively moving said plates toseparate said edges, means for feeding a wrapper sheet across saidedges, a cup-shaped commodity laden mandrel having an upper open end,means for advancing the 'open end of said mandrel against said sheet andbetween said plate edges when separated to fold said sheet over themandrel end, and anti-friction means carried by one of said plates andcoacting with said sheet during the folding operation to maintain thesheet taut. 18. In combination, an upper plate having a lower edge. alower plate having an upper edge,A

when separated to fold said sheet over the mandrel end, means for`subsequently folding the opposite edges of the sheet over each other atthe sides of the mandrel, and means for uniting said overlapped edges toform a bag.

19. In method of packaging, which comprises, confining a denite batch ofbulk material in a cup-shaped mandrel having its open end upwardlydirected, placing the mandrel with its open end uppermost laterallyagainst the lower portion of an inclined flat wrapper sheet, moving themandrel laterally and then upwardly through a conning gap to stretch thesheet over the upper open end of the mandrel and along the opposite sidethereof, connecting the opposite side edges of the sheet to form a bag,and nally inverting the assemblage and sliding the mandrel upwardly outof the bag mouth to deposit the batch by gravity into the bag.

THOMAS E. PIAzzE. ROY E. HANSON.

